What do Bats Fear?
by RiseiTekiSensei
Summary: "What kind of things does a bat fear, I wonder?" A question that has been asked by everyone for ages. What happens when the team takes a look into Robin's head to find out? Takes place during the five year gap. Character may be a little OOC. Please Read and Review
1. Chapter 1 - Prolog

*I don't own Young Justice, but if I did the Speed Force saves Wally*

_Thoughts_

"Talking"

I know, I know Young Justice ended. Poorly, but in a very DC Comics manner. And I

know, this is set right at the beginning of the 5 year jump, so this won't satisfy any of your Save-Wally-West feels, but I have been hashing this story out for over a year so here goes nothing

* * *

Chapter 1 – Prologue

It was supposed to be a simple stealth mission. Break into the warehouse, steal data, apprehend felons, leave warehouse. But as the team knows rather well, simple and stealth have never been their strong suits. When the gun fire started, Robin and Zatanna had been in the rafters waiting for their cue to descend into the control room. Aqualad and Kid Flash had just finished taking out the exterior guards when Miss Martian had been spotted by a gang member who accidentally dumped his soda onto her cloaked form. After she was seen, Superboy decided sneaky really wasn't his thing and some idiot was shooting at his girlfriend. Both Artemis and Rocket took this as their cue and came crashing through the skylights to take out the interior guards.

_Gross I'm covered in soda! _Miss Martian complained as she dodged the bullets.

_No worries sweet cheeks, now you're just twice as sweet~_ Wally thought as he ran in through the rear door, Aqualad on his heels. They both took out the guys standing guard.

Just then, Artemis shot an arrow that narrowly missed Kid Flash and tasered the guy sneaking up behind him. _Wally, you know I can hear you right?_ she thought in exasperation.

_Totally Beautiful, I just think Miss M might miss the comforts of the Wal-man_ Wally replied as he stopped to wink at Artemis who just rolled her eyes.

_Wally head in the game, the goons are headed your way._ Aqualad said as he headed to meet up with Superboy and Miss Martian at the center of the warehouse.

_I'm on it – ACK_ As KF raced towards the goons he didn't see the spilt soda and slipped knocking down Miss Martian, Artemis, and Rocket who all went flying into Superboy and Aqualad. Robin and Zatanna seeing their teammates in danger jumped down to give aid when the goons pulled out three grenades and threw them at the tangled heroes.

They had been expecting a BANG BANG BANG. Instead they heard a ppffffftttt noise as the three grenades released a foul smelling yellow gas. Startled by the gas grenades, the whole team, all eight members, breathed in this putrid smelling gas by accident.

_No! Fear gas, No one breathe!_ Robin shouted _Miss M break the mental link right now!_

*koff* "It's a little late for the no breathing thing, Rob!" Kid Flash shouted back as he dodged suppression fire.

As the team regrouped and gathered outside of the gas cloud, the gun fire and shouting had stopped. "They're running! Quick after them!" shouted Superboy.

"NO! Stop, scrap the mission. Everyone to the roof now!" Robin commanded, as he launched himself towards the closest skylight.

* * *

The cold night air of Gotham filled their lungs as the cacophony of nightlife bustle swell around them. Once everyone reached the top of the warehouse, Robin closed his holo-comp and turned to face the team.

"What the heck, Rob!" Kid hollered.

"Yeah, Robin?! Just cause it's your town doesn't mean you get to call the shots." Artemis chimed in. "I mean Kaldur's **still** the leader."

Kaldur raised a hand to stop KF and Artemis' complaints "Despite this, you appear very troubled. What is the matter with this Fear gas?"

Robin moved around Kaldur and walked over to Superboy and Miss Martian. "Fear gas causes the victim to hallucinate their worst fears." Robin replied coolly and then without warning he spun on M'gann. He pressed a syringe into her arm then turned to inject Connor with another syringe. After his surprise attack on the two aliens he flipped away to land near Artemis. Once he landed he shrugged on at the group "Miss M and Connor both hate needles they would have tensed up and the needles would have broken."

Then Robin turned to Artemis who stepped back from the clearly demented bird. "No worries, Arty. That was my last syringe, oh by the way, were you in Gotham the night Scarecrow attacked the city two years ago?" Robin asked offhandedly.

"Yeah, wh-", but before she finished the rest of her sentence Robin sprayed her with sleep gas.

Kid Flash caught his now unconscious girlfriend, "Okay! Robin no more messing around! What the hell are you doing!?" he shouted as the rest of the team moved away from the bird.

Robin raised his hands in surrender and his ever present smirk fell from his face as he confronted his wary team. "First, Miss Martian and Superboy are the two most dangerous people to go on a fear-driven hallucinated rampage. They needed the antidote the most. Second, the more you are exposed to fear gas the worse the effects are on the person, now Artemis will only suffer from a terrible dream instead of a living nightmare. As for the rest of you, this is the first time any of you have been exposed to the toxin, so you won't hallucinate. Instead, you will all suffer from panic attacks, but nothing too serious."

Everyone stared at Robin in stunned silence. After a moment Zatanna asked "Why did you tell M'gann to close the psychic link?"

Robin put his hands down "If you four would please sit down and start taking slow deep breaths it should help control the panic you should be feeling by now." Then he turned to Miss M. "Please call the Bioship, we need to get the five of them back to the cave as soon as possible. Batman and the other leaguers are waiting on standby with more antidotes."

The others did as they were told, and none of them noticed Robin's hand shake as he typed into his holo-computer. "Hey, you didn't answer Zatanna's question." Rocket stated from her seated position.

"Miss M would have projected everyone's fears throughout the team via the link. It would cause more panic and unwanted chaos." Robin replied smoothly, but he didn't turn to face them instead he continued to type away.

* * *

Once inside the mountain, the teams' respective mentors administered the antidotes to them. However both Batman and Robin vanished the moment the Bioship landed.

"Why is Artemis knocked out?" Green Arrow asked as he carried her from the ship.

"'Cause Rob' gassed her to prevent her from hallucinating too badly." KF said over the noise of the Flash's minor freak out about how Wally's mom would kill him.

"Really?" GA questioned.

"Indeed." J'onn relied "Batman had to incapacitate me as well, when I had first encounter fear gas."

"Wow, Uncle J'onn I never knew that Batman would go to such measures, but I guess that explains Robin's behavior when he was dealing with us. He had to surprise me so he could inject me with the antidote." M'gann stated.

"Speaking of Robin, where is he? Heck, where is Batman?" Zatanna asked as she stood up from where Superman had told her sit while she recovered. Everyone paused what they were doing in order to look around for the Dynamic Duo.

Then a sudden crash was heard from around the corner, as the heroes ran to the source of the sound they watched Robin fall from the rafts and land with a messy roll only to stagger franticly back to his feet. Before he finished standing Batman leapt down and planted a solid kick dead center of his back sending him sprawling back to the ground. Batman place a knee down on Robin's flaying form while he twisted one of the bird's arms to pin it to his back.

At this point Robin let out a blood curdling scream, not a shout or a cry of pain, but a scream of absolute terror. No one besides Batman had ever heard Robin make such a noise. The stunned heroes had no idea what was going on, but Batman used their hesitation to his advantage as he grabbed Robin's other arm and inject him with the antidote.

Suddenly the heroes were in motion rushing towards the battling duo, but before they could reach the two bats Batman stopped them with a look. They stopped to watch Batman continue to hold Robin as he squirmed and tried to get free. After several long minutes Robin finally stopped trying to get free, he just lay there gasping as he tried to get his breathing under control. Finally, Robin spoke "…lemme up… I'm okay…"

Batman didn't move for another minute, but reluctantly he stood up and Robin slowly climbed to his feet. His head was bowed; he wouldn't look at anyone, especially not Batman. After a little more silence, Batman finally spoke in a cold quiet voice "How many fear gas antidotes should you carry at all time?"

Robin flinched away, but replied "Three…"

"How many did you have?"

"…two."

"Why?"

"Because I forgot to refill my belt before I went out tonight…"

"Why?"

"I didn't think to check…"

"We will discuss this matter further when we return to the cave."

"Yes, sir."

With that, Batman turned on his heels and started to head for the other room. Without warning, Robin reached out and grabbed Batman's cape, head still bowed as he stared at the floor. Batman stopped and looked back at Robin, and he lifted his head to just stare at his mentor. The two stood there for quite sometime just staring at each other. Then Batman spoke in a soft voice "It's okay to admit that you were afraid…"

"Știu ... Eu sunt tatăl rău că nu am vrut să fiu lipsit de griji și să vă faceți griji ..." Robin mumbled. [1]

Then the big bad Batman let out a sigh then chuckled. THE Batman just chuckled. And this isn't your run of the mill chuckle this was a Bat chuckle. The ones so low that if the room hadn't been absolutely silent you might have missed it. This chuckle might have been used to strike fear in the hearts of men, but now it was used in a proper circumstance and it was still awe-inspiring and terrifying. He replied in the same language "Micul meu pasăre, nu am încetat niciodată griji pentru tine. Tot ce vreau este să fie un pic mai preocupați de siguranța dumneavoastră." [2]

This time Robin cracked a wry smile and replied "Știu că multumesc tata ... putem să mergem acasă acum?" [3]

Batman nodded and they both headed for the zeta tubes. Neither of them took any notice to the gawking crowd that had gathered around the two of them. As they walked through the zeta tubes, Robin still held onto Batman's cape.

* * *

This chapter is really just the sample of my writing and will help give way to the actual plot of the story. Yes, Robin is Romani in my story, yes I used Romanian for the dialog, and yes I am a strong believer in Daddybats. The couples that I will use will be as follows RobinXZatanna, WallyXArtemis, ConnorXM'gann, and KaldurXRaquel. Thanks for reading, don't forget to review. See you next chapter!

[1] I know... I'm sorry Dad I didn't mean to be careless and make you worry...

[2] My little bird, I have never stopped worrying about you. All I want is you to be a little more concerned about your safety.

[3] I know, thank you Dad…can we please go home now?


	2. Chapter 2 - Minds and Monsters

*I don't own Young Justice, but if I did the Speed Force saves Wally*

_Thoughts_

"Talking"

Chapter 2 has officially been posted! Um, so yeah it's a cliffhanger, but a least I warned you right. I have a bit of a confession… I love writing cliffhangers so I apologize to the readers in advance. But, without further ado…

* * *

Chapter 2 – Minds and Monsters

~ One Week Later ~

No one had seen hide nor hair of Robin or Batman since the '**Incident**' as the team had dubbed the events of last week's fear gas ordeal. The team was all present in the cave, each doing something with their rare, but valued free time.

The cave hummed with the low buzz of the TV as Wally flipped through the channels while stuffing his mouth with popcorn. In the cave's kitchen, M'gann and Connor attempted to 'bake a cake', but everyone knew what they were actually doing. Artemis was sitting on the couch next to Wally as she cleaned her bow. In the arm chair, Zatanna sat curled up with a well-loved paper back novel. Lastly across the room Kaldur and Raquel were playing a very 'intense' game of Go Fish. The person who laughed first lost the game.

After several hours of the quiet buzz of tranquility, Artemis finally broke. "Are we ever going to talk about what happened last week?"

Everyone stopped what they had been doing; even M'gann and Connor came out of the kitchen. No one said anything for several minutes, until Wally switched off the TV and turned to look at his girlfriend. "What specifically did you want to talk about?" he asked carefully.

"Well, if **someone** hadn't gassed me, then I wouldn't have had to check the surveillance footage to find out what my teammates weren't telling me. So why don't we start there?" Artemis said exasperatedly.

"Artemis we are not sure as to what exactly occurred that night, but clearly Batman and Robin have an odd relationship. It, however, is not our place to question it." Kaldur said calmly.

"Well, why not! Batman doesn't have the right to just push us around!" Connor shouted angrily.

"Yes, but the way they spoke after Robin was reprimanded had so many warm emotions I was a little overwhelmed. I don't think Batman was pushing him around." M'gann said as she put a hand on Connor to calm him down. In the background, the Zeta tubes could be heard activating.

"M'gann, don't you know what they said? I mean you can translate any language, right?" Artemis questioned curiously.

"I… No I couldn't. Normally I can identify the language and then find the proper translation, but only if the language had been written down. Whatever they were speaking in never has, but it sounds like it could have been comprised from an assortment of different European languages." M'gann said.

"Hey, Wally. You're Robin's best bro right? Do you know anything about the language or about why the Bats went totally haywire?" Raquel questioned.

Wally fidgeted in his seat and then stuffed a large hand fully of popcorn in his mouth. He then mumbled something while he was still chewing. The moment he swallowed, Artemis smacked the back of his head "Spill it, Kid Mouth."

"I-I can't you know bro-code and stuff…" Wally trailed off lamely. Artemis just stared at him and Wally began to squirm under her gaze. "Seriously I can't tell you about the language thing, and the deal with the craziness is something you all can figure out."

"What do you mean, we can figure it out?" Raquel asked.

"Think about all the stuff Rob told us about the effects of fear gas." Wally said as he leaned back to put his feet up on the table.

"Um… He said that the fear gas cause people to hallucinate their fears…" Artemis said racking her brain for more information, that night was still a little fuzzy.

"He said that the more you are exposed to fear gas the worse the effects are…" Zatanna chimed in.

"Okay, now how many syringes did Robin say he had?" Wally said.

"…two… Hello Megan! He used both of them on me and Connor…" M'gann slowly trailed off as she realized what that meant.

"Robin did not use the antidote; instead he let the toxin spread… even though he had been exposed to the chemical on numerous occasions while fighting the Scarecrow in Gotham." Kaldur said quietly.

"That's why he had me end the mind link, so we wouldn't know… how bad he was suffering…" M'gann turned to hug Connor as tears welled up in her eyes.

"…Think about everything Robin has been through… he and Batman fight in **Gotham**… the things they must have seen while fighting the psychopaths of Arkham…" Zatanna said with a horrified tone.

"What kind of things does a bat fear, I wonder?" Robin said as he lounged on the back of Zatanna's armchair. Everyone in the room jumped a foot in the air, Robin only cackled. "The zeta tubes announced my entrance and everything. You guys have disastrous perception skills, heavy on the dis." He said merrily as he looked up at the cave's celling. "Oh, if you are going to discuss my mental stability and the things that I might fear, pick a place less open. Someone might over hear you." And with that Robin jumped off the chair and made his way towards the hall.

"Wait! Robin we didn't mean to make you upset!" Zatanna called after him. Robin stopped and turned back to the others.

"I'm not upset. Curiosity is kind of my thing, so I get it. However your concern is unnecessary. I am perfectly capable taking care of myself and dealing with my own monsters. After all, the only thing to fear is fear itself." Robin said as he headed for the training room.

* * *

~ Two Weeks Later ~

The zeta tubes activated and the team stumbled into the cave. The mission had been a long and grueling one that turned out to be a massive waste of time. They had been out in that jungle for three days all based on some bogus source, which resulted in the young heroes capture and inevitable escape.

Now they were all exhausted, hungry, and pissed at 4:45 am.

The team dispersed each shuffling off with a different goal in the mind. Wally and Connor made a B-line to the kitchen, fully prepared to eat everything in sight. Raquel and Kaldur limbed to the Medical ward in search of pain killers and sleep. Zatanna, Artemis, and M'gann went straight to the showers hoping to drown their fatigued muscles in scorching water. Robin was the only one who couldn't rest yet. He had a report to complete and submit by 5:30.

* * *

~ The Next Morn-er… Afternoon ~

No one in the cave woke up before 12:30 pm. They currently did not have a 'den mother' because the team wasn't supposed to be back for another two days so none of the leaguers had been assigned yet.

Wally was the first awake soon followed by Artemis. Both walked into the kitchen like zombies. To them the only kindness in the world was the fact that the coffee machine has an automatic setting. Next were M'gann and Kaldur who needed to check on their wounds, but soon joined the others in the kitchen. Lastly Connor, Raquel, and Zatanna stumbled into the kitchen. They ate in quiet, letting their brains catch up with the rest of them. Wally broke the silence first. "Hey, has anyone seen Robin?"

Connor grunted "He's here somewhere." Then he went back to eating his Captain Crunch.

Zatanna decided to go search for him. She shuffled out of the kitchen with a piece of toast in her mouth. When she spotted the Boy Wonder sound asleep on the couch in the common room she almost dropped her toast on the floor. The team hardly ever saw Robin sleep, even on the long missions he would be the last to fall asleep and the first to wake up. Yet here he was sound asleep in pajamas on the couch. His mask was on still and from the looks of it Robin changed in to pjs then sat on the sofa to work on his laptop, which was closed on the floor rear the sofa, and fell asleep before he could head back to his room. Zatanna quietly moved back into the kitchen.

"I found Robin, he's asleep on the sofa in the other room." Zatanna said with a smirk. It wasn't every day you got the opportunity to prank the Prankster.

"What?! Really?" Wally said excitedly. Revenge was going to be so sweet.

The whole team was rather curious about the fact that they could witness a bat sleep, so they all crept into the common room and snuck up to the couch. They didn't know really what to expect as they got close enough to really see him, but they most certainly were not prepared for what they did see.

A kid sound asleep.

Seeing Robin sprawled out on the sofa made everyone acutely aware of the fact that Robin was just a kid. The sofa made him look so small by comparison and the complete relaxation of his body and face made him look like the youth he was.

_Hey guys, I set up the mental link so we can talk without waking him up._ M'gann thought as she leaned forward to lean on the back of the couch.

_Just how old is Robin? _Raquel questioned the group in general.

_Fourteen… Sometimes I forget that…_ Wally replied all mischievous intent gone.

_Is this really the same kid, who acts like nothing is wrong because he thinks we can't help him…_Zatanna thought. Frustrated by the fact that Robin was younger than her, but he still didn't trust her or the rest of the team to help him.

_He told me once that he had been a hero since he was nine, is that true? _Artemis asked curiously. She had no problem with crime fight as a young teen, but to think that he had been doing it for so long.

…_yeah…The kid has had a hard life…_ Wally relied remorsefully thinking back to the time when he went with Dick to go visit his parents' graves.

_And like us, he has a hard future. We should let him rest without prying eyes. _Kaldur said calmly feeling that Robin would not be happy about the invasion of privacy and personal space.

_Yeah Kaldur's right; 'Sides, you and I still have a game of Go Fish to finish._ Raquel added. She didn't want to dwell on the fact that the most experienced member of her team was a kid.

_That we do._ Kaldur said with a smile and took hold of Raquel's hand and led her off into another room. M'gann broke the mental link between them and the group to give them their own privacy. Just as she was about to end the group link for the others, Robin sat straight up. He went from a sound sleep to completely awake and aware of his surroundings. Being trained by Batman gave Robin the uncanny ability to tell when people were near him, irrelevant of his state of consciousness. This of course completely alarmed the remaining teens who were gathered around him. Each let out a shriek of surprise, however Zatanna's shriek was followed by a knee-jerk spell "PEELS!"

And Robin slumped back on to the couch fast asleep. Everyone but Connor had to try and get their heart rate back down to a normal speed.

"'Tanna what did you do?" Artemis finally asked.

"I cast a sleep spell" she said as she smacked her forehead "It's a knee-jerk sorta thing, like a defense mechanism… Robin's not going to be feeling the aster for the next four to six hours" she said with a sigh.

"Four to six hours, your spell lasts for that long?" Wally asked an idea forming in his head.

"What is it Kid Idiot? It never ends well when you start thinking." Artemis said in a snide tone.

"Ouch Beautiful, But I'm thinking that maybe we might be able to use this to our advantage. I mean with a little help from Miss M here, we'll learn a bit more about Rob." Wally said while a grin spread across his freckled face.

"I don't know Wally, Robin wouldn't like it if we invade his personal space… And reading a person's mind without their permission is wrong." M'gann said as she took a step away from the sofa.

"Then don't read his mind, just get a glimpse at the sort of emotions he had, oh about three or so weeks ago. You know during the **Incident**" Wally said his smirk still in place.

"But… I don't know, I can't really tell you about a person's emotions, I can sense them, but not explain them…" M'gann said a little leery of the concept still.

"Don't tell us then, you can just show us with the mind link" Artemis said. She still really wanted to know more about the stuff she had seen on the security tapes. At this point, Connor began to head for the door. He wasn't a big fan of the touchy feely stuff anyway. Just as he was about to reach the doorway, M'gann called out to him "Wait, Connor don't go… I need your help."

Connor stopped and was about to speak when he heard _…please…_ in his thoughts. Connor closed his mouth and grunted as he walked back into the room to stand next to M'gann.

"Are you guys sure you want me to do this…?" M'gann questioned. All she received were three nods in reply. "Okay, here we go" M'gann floated over Robin's head she sat cross legged in the air. Her eyes began to glow and then she was in. The others felt Robin's mind enter their mind link session.

_Um… just give me a second…I don't quite have a good enough connection… _M'gann thought casually.

Wally snickered as he thought _Who knew psychics could have a bad connection…Ha, it's like poor Wi-Fi. _

_Shut up, you're distracting her. _Artemis thought as she wacked Wally. The group waited in silence for several minutes and nothing really happened.

_Hey, M'gann is something wrong?_ Zatanna asked slightly concerned that her magic might have affected M'gann's ability to read Robin's mind.

After another minute she finally responded _No… I just can't seem to get through; it's kind of odd… _Then suddenly she thought _Ha! I've got it- oh no Wait – I can't- _

The whole world around them suddenly shifted, as their vision tunneled. Then the world faded to black.

* * *

So that ends chapter 2! What do you think? Hey, I know you could tell me by reviewing! So you all go do that and I'll go write the next chapter.

Later Gators ~


	3. Chapter 3 - Come One, Come All

*I don't own Young Justice, but I might own the inside of Robin's head, maybe?*

Thoughts

"Talking"

It's been awhile, Crocodile ~

* * *

Chapter 3 – Come One, Come All

Black. Everything was black. The five heroes stand up and see nothing around them, but each other and the darkness.

"What happened?" Wally asked as he stood up.

Wally offered a hand to Artemis to help her up "Yeah, where are we?" Artemis adds. Then a bright florescent light flicks on overhead and the world comes into view. They were in a jail cell.

One of the large ones that are designed to hold multiple people while they wait to be bailed out. It was a concrete box, with steel benches on each of three of the walls. The last wall was large steel bars that went from ceiling to floor, but there was one thing missing from the room… an exit.

"Prison" Connor growled. He stalked over to the bars and pulled. Nothing happened they didn't even budge. Connor began to pull with all of his strength yelling as he did, still nothing.

All the while M'gann was staring at the cell turning in circle eyes wide in shock. "We can't leave… I can't leave Robin's mind! The connection, it won't break!" M'gann said she was now in full panic mode.

All eyes snapped to M'gann.

"W-What? What did you just say?!" Artemis shouted back.

"B-but how? I mean- you can't just get accidently stuck inside someone else's head!" Wally hollered.

"While I was trying to find the proper memory, something grabbed my mind and yanked me into to his mind. And because we were linked at the time, all of you guys got dragged in too. I-I'm so sorry… I just don't know what to do…" M'gann said as she lowered her head to her hands. Connor moved over to M'gann and held her.

"Stop yelling. It's not her fault!" Connor said, defending his girlfriend.

"Nah, Miss M it's not your fault it's mine." Wally said as he looked down clenching his fists "I pushed you into this, if I hadn't, then-" Wally suddenly stopped mid-sentence and looked at his hands in horror. They weren't shaking, when Wally got up set his hands would vibrate, but they weren't. "I-I can't use my powers. I can't use my powers!" he shouted as his eyes roamed around the cell as if something in the cell might be able to tell him why.

Artemis interrupted their panic and said "I don't care whose fault it is, all I care about is figuring out how to get out of bird boy's brain. Powers or not, we are still heroes and nothing is going to stop us." As she spoke, she turned to look each one of them in the eye. Then Zatanna's head whipped around and she looked out of the cell and into the hall. "Zatanna, what is it?" Artemis asked. The walls in the hall were also made of concrete, but floor had a white and blue checkered tile.

"I thought I saw something moving down there, but it's too dark to tell." She said not looking away. Artemis was about to speak again when they heard a child's giggle.

The others turned to the look at the hall. A child's voice could be heard as it mumbled something. Then they heard a *clop* almost as if someone was jumping down the hallway. The team froze. They just stared at the hall waiting for something to move.

*clop* "…atentă am aproape a cazut…"[ …be careful you almost fell… ]

_What on earth could that be…_ Artemis thought as she moved into a fighting stance.

*Clop* "Hehehehe… amintiți-vă de dale albe sunt lava…"[ Hehehehe ... remember the white tiles are lava ... ]

_Why can't I see anything? This thing should be in sight by now…_ Zatanna thought anxiously as she continued to stare down the right side of the hall.

*Clop* "Arahidă, trebuie să fie mai atenți…"[ Peanut, you should be more careful ... ]

_Wait, did that just say- I smell __**Blackmail~**_ Wally thought and he relaxed his stance.

*CLOP* and a small child around the age of seven jumped into view from the left side of the hall. The boy had a mess of black hair and was wearing white leotard with a golden bird insignia on the front. He was holding a stuffed animal of some kind. The others tensed, uncertainty filled their every thought.

*CLOP* The boy hadn't even noticed them. He was staring intently at the floor as he hopped from one blue tile to the next one.

*CLOP* The child was standing in the center of the hall completely focused on his task. He was about to jump again , but he paused. Suddenly he turned to stare into the cell, his startlingly blue eyes were wide with shock.

And then as if he suddenly recognized them, he smiled from ear to ear in absolute joy, the way only children can. He the squealed in high pitched delight and rushed forward. "Tu ești aici! Nu pot să cred că e voi! Am cunoscut pe cineva a fost capturat, dar este într-adevăr echipa mea! Artemis și Wally și Connor și M'gann și Zatanna!"[ You're here! I cannot believe it's you! I knew someone was caught, but it was really my team! Artemis and Wally and Connor and M'gann and Zatanna! ] as the child said each of their names he pointed to them "Așteaptă aici, trebuie să-i spun cuiva!"[ Wait here, I have to go tell someone! ] Once he finished shouting his little speech he turned and ran back the way he came, giggling the whole way.

"Well, that's new…" Wally said in a highly amused tone. It wasn't every day you got to see a seven-year-old Dick Grayson. The rest of the team looked back at Wally.

"Did you understand what that kid was saying?" Artemis asked in shock.

"What, no way!" Wally said with a dismissive gesture "That was total gibberish; the only thing I recognized was our names."

M'gann snapped her fingers as she remembered where she had heard that language before "That's the same language that Batman and Robin had been using during the incident!"

"So, what does this mean?" Zatanna asked.

"I'll tell you what it means-" Wally started but Artemis suddenly clapped a hand over Wally's mouth. She held a figure up to her lips, shushing the others. Then they heard it, two voices talking.

"…Haide! Ești atât de lennnttttt." [ ... Come on! You're so slooowwww. ]the child whined.

"Quit whining and stop babbling in that weird language, just speak English." the other voice said. The team however, recognized this voice. It was Robin.

Zatanna jumped towards the bars and shouted "Robin! Come let us out!" The footsteps picked up speed as the two people came running from the left.

But it hadn't been Robin… It was Robin's costume…Without anyone in it… the domino mask seemed to just float in the air.

Zatanna stumbled back, in surprise. The Robin costume whistled at the sight of them "Wow, you weren't kidding about them…"

"Seeee I told you, you needed to go faster…" the child said as he crossed his arms, a stuffed elephant in his grasp.

"Whatever. Look, I need you to go and tell Guard we can't leave them in the cell… well, that we can't leave Zee in the cell." As he said Zatanna's nickname, the mask moved in a fashion that clearly indicated he was giving her the once-over "Do you think you can do that Before?" the costume said to the child.

"Yes of course I can. Before and Așteaptă are on the case!" the kid shouted with glee as he continued to the right and out of sight.

"Wha-what is going on here!?" Artemis shouted.

"Temper, temper." The costume said as he shook a gloved finger at her, "If you aren't nice I might not let you out." it said with a cocky attitude.

"Who are you and why do you want to let me out?" Zatanna questioned.

"I, am Robin." It said with a mock bow "And my day can only be Asterous, if you share it with me" it said still just as cocky. "**Dis**caged, of course."

"You aren't Robin, you're just his costume." Connor said bluntly.

The costume shook his imaginary head "Only in the physical world is that true, but here inside his head we take the form he gives us."

"Robin, cease confusing our guests. It's exceptionally rude." another voice said from down the hallway.

The costume turned to the right and his whole body slumped "Ugh, not you…"

"Yes, me." The voice replied and suddenly another not-person walked into view. This one was wearing a high end black suit. His black shoes shined and matched his thin black tie. His blue shirt looked like it was silk and matched his blue handkerchief. The suit was also wearing a mask. This one resembled a theatre mask of comedy; it was very plain and ordinary unlike the rest of him.

"Oh, god not another one" Wally groaned as he scrubbed his hands over his face.

The suit bowed his head in acknowledgement "My apologies, for the discomfort of a cell and for the rude behavior of Robin, but there are six Personas and Influences in all, plus him."

"Greeaaatttt" Artemis said sarcasm dripped from her voice.

Zatanna rolled her eyes at Artemis and then asked "What is your name?"

"You may call me Richard, Miss Zatanna" Richard purred his voice as smooth as silk.

The others were about to ask questions when Robin interrupted them and asked Richard "Why are you here?"

"Before informed me of our unusual guests while he ran off to find Guard" Richard replied.

"Brat, just had to go and run his mouth…" Robin grumbled to himself as he crossed his arms.

"I take it, you did not want me to come and steal Miss Zatanna from you" Richard said, a challenge in his voice.

"In your dreams, Pretty boy." Robin snorted.

"Me? Steal **me** away?" Zatanna said clearly vexed "I am no one's thing, and I don't get stolen by anyone."

"No, but you do like being _**Kidnapped.**_" both Robin and Richard said at the same time. Neither seemed fazed by the fact that they said the same thing at the same time, however Zatanna flushed.

Then out of nowhere the child from before dropped down from the rafters and shouted "Știam că voi doi ar putea conveni asupra lucrurilor!"[ I knew you two could agree on stuff! ]

Robin shook his head "We have been through this. Speak English, not Gibberish!"

Then Richard bent down to the child and said "Please."

The kid sighed and said "I said that I knew you two could agree on stuff, but no one ever listens." Then as an afterthought he turned to Robin and stuck his tongue out "Romani isn't gibberish, and you're just jealous 'cause Masks can't understand it."

"Romani?" M'gann questioned at the exact same time Wally asked "Masks?"

The little boy turned to look at the heroes, just as happy as before "These two are Masks that he wears. And Romani is my native language."

"I still don't understand, what do you mean wears?" Wally asked.

Robin snorted "Figures." only to get a look from Richard who replied "We are Personas that he uses when he is being Robin or when he is being Richard. We are the masks he wears to face the world, whether that world is the Gotham streets and thugs or the pompous and arrogant members of the upper class."

"But this Robin is nothing like the one we know" M'gann said.

The young boy jumped around "I know, I know why!" Richard put a hand on Before's head as a signal to answer "That's 'cause they aren't being filtered through his real personality." When Before finished he looked up at Richard to see if he was right.

"That is exactly right, well done Before" Richard replied.

"Wait, is your name 'Before'?" Artemis questioned.

The boy looked back to her nodding vigorously "And this is Așteaptă." Before exclaimed as held up his stuffed elephant "She's my partner, we do everything together!" Now that they could get a good look at the toy, it was very obvious that Before loved this elephant, **a lot**. One of the eyes had been replaced with a black button and the stuffed animal had been patched a few times with strips of some type of blue canvas.

"Before isn't a name so why are you called that?" Connor grunted.

"Because silly, I'm not After." Before giggled.

"Wait, so there is another one of you named After?" Wally asked.

"Yes, indeed. They represent the personality difference that occurred. The Before and the After." Richard explained. "For most people, your personality slowly changes over time as you learn new things and gain different experiences. However if you go through…a life-altering event, your personality might split into the type of person you were to the type of person you are now. With Before and After they both have continued to gain experiences and learn new things however they interpret that information differently due to the trauma of the life-altering event."

"Both After and I are Influences. We help him decide things; because of our independent views of the world we can each make calls that suit certain situations better." Before said in a very serious tone as he stared at Wally.

Wally in turn bowed his head at the information he had learned. Wally walked over to one of the benches and just sat, not saying anything to the team or to the three outside of the cell.

"…Wally, it's okay…" Before said and Wally lifted his head to look into the familiar blue eyes "You don't have to know all of the gritty details to be my best friend…"

Wally snickered. "At least now I know who actually comes up with the touchy feely lines…" Wally said as he shook his head slightly.

"And the pranks, I remember the time that I duct taped you to the ceiling a-and you t-thought you h-had b-been ab-bducted by Aliens!" Before managed to say between giggles. Everyone snickered at Wally's expense.

"Yeah, yeah laugh it up. I still managed to dye your school shirt pink" Wally said with victory.

This time Richard responded "And I look damn good in pink. The best part was that it was in October, everyone thought I was trying to make a bold statement to support Breast Cancer Awareness. The school board changed everyone's uniform shirt to pink for the rest of October in support. I have been meaning to thank you ever since."

"Dude, I can't even prank you right." Wally groaned as he leaned back against the wall.

Robin spoke up "I'm just **Loving** this group bonding session, but, Before, didn't I send you to go and get Guard?"

"I did, he said he had other things to do before he came to deal with you." Before said with a serves-you-right attitude.

"What 'other stuff'?" Robin asked.

"He was saying something about a sleep spell and that he had to go help him get rid of it." Robin replied and Zatanna winced.

"Sorry about that… It was a reflex spell." Zatanna said to her shoes.

Robin leaned against the bars and said "Don't worry Zee, it's almost impossible to stay mad at you…"

"…Especially when you smile. You just light up the room, so please, look up for me and smile." Richard finished.

Zatanna looked up as a nice flush spread across her cheeks. "I-I don't know what to say to that… our Robin doesn't **ever** act like this…"

"Much to our displeasure, I mean you look so adorable when you flush like that." Richard said.

* * *

So that's the end of this chapter. First, I'm so sorry about the late update; I just got back from Europe yesterday, so I just didn't have a chance to post this chapter. Second, the underlined "he" and "him" s are not stressed in any way it's just to help show you guys a significance in the pronouns and that they aren't referring to someone in the room. Feel free to ask questions if you don't understand something. Thanks for the Favorites, Follows, and Reviews they help keep me going.

Until next time ~


	4. Chapter 4 - Jail Break

*I don't own Young Justice, but I might own the inside of Robin's head, maybe?*

_Thoughts_

"Talking"

Hey, Guys~ I'm glad that so many people like my story. It makes me all giggly and happy, so Thank you so much! Here's the next chapter, hope you guys and gals like it~

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Chapter 4 – Jail Break

Zatanna was about to respond when an alarm sounded. Red lights flashed and a siren began to wail.

"WHAT'S HAPPENING?" Artemis shouted over the noise.

"NO TIME! STAY HERE AND KEEP YOUR HEADS DOWN!" Robin shouted back. Then he jerked his head to Richard and the both sprinted down the hall and out of sight. Seconds after the two Masks had left the siren stopped as suddenly as it had started.

Before poked his head into view from the other side and said "Îmi pare rău de zgomot, but I had to get rid of those two."[ Sorry about the noise, but I had to get rid of those two ]

"Does that mean you sounded the alarm? And why do you want to get rid of Richard and Robin?" Wally questioned, still rubbing his ringing ears.

"I-We needed them to go because they would disapprove of what we want to do…" Before said as he watched his feet shuffle forward.

"We? Whose we?" M'gann asked as she moved closer to the bars.

"…me and After…" Before mumbled, shifting his gaze back the way he came. "Haide După."

"Nu am nevoie pentru a le testa mai întâi. Spune-le că mi-e teamă că vei fi supărat." [ No I need to test them first. Tell them I'm afraid they'll be upset. ] A similar voice responds in more hushed tones.

"After says you guys can't get upset, kay?" Before said as he looked back to the teens.

"Sure, why would we be upset?" Wally said with a shrug.

"Fă-i promit."[ Make them promise ] the voice said.

Before rolled his eyes "He says you guys got to promise."

Choruses of promises came from the captured teens. After a few moments they heard movement and After came into view. He looked like an older version of Before. He was slightly taller and slightly older, but he wore the same white and gold leotard and had the same hair style. This information was only recorded by some minor thought process because the two jarring differences between After and Before were at the forefront of their minds.

First, the eyes. Before had bright beautiful blue eyes that shinned and shimmered with joy and life. After's eyes were a cold flat blue. They hid soul crushing despair and blood boiling fury just under the surface.

Second, and the most disturbing difference, was the blood. After's white leotard was smeared with congealing blood.

The team stood there in absolute shock. None of them could find the will to speak, to ask, to cry out in horror. Once After reached Before he turned to look at the group "Some promise…" After said as he crossed his arms.

"After, you said that you would help me, not criticize them." Before said as he crossed his arms as well.

"No I said we need help, not that we have to get help from **them**." After said coolly as he jerked his head to the heroes.

Zatanna seemed to find her voice first "Help? What's wrong?"

After turned as said "Antrenament is losing to Spaimă."

"Um… What does that mean?" Wally asked as he moved closer to the bars.

After snorted "These guys cannot be our only option."

Before ignored After "You guys don't know their true names, but he meant Guard is losing to Prisoner."

"Is this Prisoner another Influence?" Artemis questioned.

"Yes both Guard and Prisoner are Influences, but they are in a constant battle." After replied.

"And why do you need our help?" M'gann asked cautiously.

"Guard is losing the battle, and if Prisoner wins…" Before trailed off.

"We all die." After said bluntly "No sugar coating, the person you know as Robin ceases to exist. His mind breaks and he gets to invent his own brand of insanity."

"What?!" Wally shouts. The rest of the team is stunned into silence.

"Before, you can't honestly believe they can help?" After says, irritation dripping from his words.

"Don't be stupid! You know they're heroes. You know that they're your friends! They can and will help. That's what family does-" Before shouts but After interrupts him.

"No." his voice ice cold "I don't have a family. And I don't need one."

"Liar. You have just been trapped by Spaimă for so long that you don't want to suffer anymore! Well, news flash, Life. Is. Pain." Before shouts back. "But it's also happiness, and love and smiles and the warmth of the sun and friends and family. Life needs to be lived, with others." Before said his voice soothing.

"How?" Wally asked.

"What?" After questioned.

"How can we help?" Zatanna said. Behind her stood the rest of the team faces set. They stood together, ready to fight, like always. While the two Influences had argued the team did what they did best, rallied together and prepared to fight for those who couldn't. They were heroes after all.

After just stared at them. "Why would you help me? The things that you will have to witness… They will haunt you for the rest of your life. Every time you close your eyes, this will play over and over inside your own heads. Do you still want to help me?" After questioned.

"Yeah, duh." Wally replied with a grin "Has years of friendship meant nothing to you?"

"Seriously, kid. We are **your** team, **your** friends, and **your** family. And this family means more to me than anything." Artemis said.

"Besides we are heroes. Helping is our job." Connor said with a small smile. M'gann hugged his arm in agreement.

"I told you." Before said sticking his tongue out at After.

After shook his head "Fine, Come on, grab the bars." he said. Before rushed over to the center bars and grabbed one. After walked over and grabbed a bar next to Before. Then they both pulled back as if they were siding open a glass door. Slowly but surely the bars began to pull away from each other, as the other metal bars slid into a hidden alcove in the wall. The two kids, however, could only seem to pull the doors open just enough for the team to slip out.

Both kids panted but After said "Quick… We have to go…"

The teens quickly filed out and into the hall, Before and After began moving down the apparently endless hallway. "Come on, let's go!" Before shouted with glee.

"We can't give you back your power, but I can tell you what's going to happen and I can try to answer some your questions." After said as they walked.

"Okay, let's start with Guard and Prisoner. What are they exactly?" Zatanna asked.

"Guard is all of his training. He is the skills and the rules and the practice that Batman taught him. While, Prisoner is his fear." After said calmly.

"His fear?" Artemis asked "But, Robin doesn't get scared, like Ever."

"Wrong. He gets scared, but his training kicks in and he ignores it. But that's the problem, ignoring the fear lets it fester and grow. If this keeps up he'll start to change… and none of us really like the possible outcomes." After said in an icy tone.

They others were silent for a long time. Until Zatanna spoke "Why didn't he just talk to us?"

"Well, he kinda is now. I mean you guys are still inside his head." Before said with a shrug.

"But, Guard and I wouldn't let him. Until recently I felt that, I don't need others to help me. I can solve problems on my own; I don't need to let people in." After said quietly.

"But, you're a kid. Kid's should ask for help, especially when they're scared." Connor said bluntly.

After spun around and stopped the team. As he faced the team his cold eyes burned with anger "I haven't been a kid since I was eight years old.* And don't you _**ever**_ tell me what I should and should not do." After's voice was low and hate filled every word. Suddenly Before grabbed After and spun him back.

"El nu a vrut, nu asa oricum. Calmează-te, el a fost doar încercarea de a privi afară pentru tine." [ He didn't mean that, and you know it. Calm down, he was just trying to look out for you. ]Before said in a soothing tone. After just shook out of his grip and trudged ahead of the group.

Before just sighed "Come on, we have to keep walking…" and continued after After.

"What did Connor say that made After so upset?" M'gann asked.

Before sighed again, but said "After doesn't like being looked down upon by others, especially when the others have super powers. He is sick of being the weak one, or the one who needs to be helped or saved. So it took a lot of convincing to even get him to admit that we need help."

"I didn't mean to insult him." Connor said.

"Yeah, he knows that. He's just throwing a fit!" Before said, but the last part he shouted down the hall to After.

Suddenly a thought occurred to Wally "Hey, why didn't you tell Batman?"

"What do you mean?" Before questioned cautiously.

"I mean, Why didn't you tell Batman that you were- are scared?" Wally asked slightly annoyed. Before didn't say anything, by now the group had caught up with After.

"Because he has a lot on his plate right now and I didn't want to add my mess to that." After said.

"BS!" Wally shouted "The both of you know better, Batman would literally drop everything and help you. He loves you and you know it."

"But that's why we can't tell him!" Before shouted back "He's got a lot of time sensitive stuff going on and we don't want to pull him away from it, just because of some nightmares."

After put a hand on Before's shoulder and they continued to walk in silence. After a few minutes the hallway came to an abrupt end. There was a stainless steel door in front of them. The door looked sickly clean and it was the only thing that they had seen the entire time they had walked down the hall.

"Once you go through this door you can't come back." After began "This door will lead you to the two worst memories he has. One from being Robin and the one that caused us." When After said this Before grabbed his hand as they turned to face the team.

"First you will witness a memory, once you have you will go through another door just like this one. Now you guys will be inside Spaimă's domain, just run through it as fast as you can. There will be another door like this one there. That will lead you to the second memory." After said.

"Aren't you guys going with us?" Artemis asked.

They both shook their heads "No we can't enter memories. Anymore questions?" Before said.

"How will this help, Robin?" Zatanna asked.

"Once you know what he is afraid of you can help him fight that fear, from outside of his head." Before replied.

"Are you ready?" After asked. The team nodded grimly. Before and After placed their hands on the door and the click of the lock filled the silent hallway. Both children moved away from the door to give the teen heroes room.

Wally reached for the knob and opened the door. The second the rubber seal broke on the door, it swung open and sucked them into its black depths.

* * *

That's the end of this chapter. I'm sorry for the late update! I have had total writer's block, but I think it's mostly gone. It however is the reason for the short chapter; hopefully next chapter will be longer to make up for it. *I'm making a reference. Do **you** get it?*

Also I want to see if you guys can guess what Robin's Fear is. The one thing he is truly afraid of. I don't want to make it too obvious, but if you guys aren't starting to get it after next chapter then I'm not doing this right. Message me with questions or with the answer and Don't forget to review.

P.S. No, it's not Owls. But props for reading 52


	5. Chapter 5 - Acid and Laughter

*I don't own Young Justice, but I might own the inside of Robin's head, maybe?*

_Thoughts_

"Talking"

Alright, with luck, I finally have Robin's age and birthday right. He is fourteen, and his birthday is December 1st. Hopefully this will no longer be an issue, but thank you for trying to keep me with the shows background~ On with the story

* * *

**- Warning Chapters 5-7 are Rated Teen for Violence and Terror -**

Chapter 5 – Acid and Laughter

The team stumbled forward and came to an abrupt stop. They looked around to get their bearings and discovered that the door they just went through was gone and that now they were in some warehouse.

"Hey, guys I think this is in Gotham." Artemis said as she gestured to the WayneTech crates all around them.

"Duh, this memory is when he was Robin." Wally said in a matter-o-fact tone.

"It could have been from a mission, Baywatch!" Artemis shot back.

"No, trust me, Gotham is the scariest place on Earth!" Wally spat out.

"What about Blüdhaven?" Artemis said, her words venomous.

Wally was about to retort when they team heard laughter; spine-tingling, blood-chilling, heart-stopping laughter. Laughter that they thought they would never hear again, laughter they heard once before when they fought the Injustice League. The team started running towards it.

_Oh God, please couldn't it have been someone else!_ Wally thought as he ran.

_Please, please, please be okay!_ Zatanna thought as terror wracked her body.

The team rounded a corner and was stunned into silence by what they saw. There was the Joker dancing around in delight as he cackled. His green hair was disheveled and his purple suit was singed in several places.

And then there was Robin. He couldn't have been much older than ten. His torso was chained to a large metal sheet, while both of his arms were stretched out at an angle and latched to the sheet. He was hanging a few feet off the ground and he had blood dripping down his face from an unseen head wound. He was awake and watching the psychopath's mad little dance with a look of boredom.

"Come on, Bird boy smile~ This is the first time it's been just you and me. Now there's no big bad Bat to tell you what to do. It's just your good ol' Uncle J." Joker said as he giggled. Robin said nothing. He just stared.

"Get him!" Wally shouted as he charged for the Joker. Everyone but Miss Martian joined in the attack.

"Wait! Guys you can't!" M'gann shouted. But it was too late the others ran towards the Joker only to pass right through him. Shouts of alarm rang out as they tumbled through and crashed to the ground.

"Like I was trying to say, you can't affect anything here. It's a memory, this has already happened. We have to just watch from the sidelines." M'gann told her team as the untangled themselves.

"We just have to watch?!" Artemis shouted, a little horrified.

"We can't help Robin at all…" Zatanna said as he looked at the young boy strung up like some kind of sick prize.

The others moved back to where Miss M was standing. The moment they moved out of the way, the memory started again. "…and every time we interfere the memory stops and waits for you to move so it can continue…" M'gann mumbled.

"Aww. Your such a party pooper, just like Batsy. Well, no matter. You can still entertain me while I wait for him." Joker said as he pulled out this big remote with a big red button on it. "You see, I've always want to know how many drops of acid it would take to clip your wings~"

Now the Joker pointed to the odd contraption sitting over Robin's right shoulder. "If I push this button, acid will drip onto your shoulder and then you'll writhe in agony and I'll get the popcorn." The Joker burst into hysterical giggles and pressed the button.

The team watched in horror as the acid began to drip, but Robin didn't even flinch as the acid landed on him, in fact he snorted. The Joker look to Robin, then to the device, and then back to Robin. "Oh that's right!" he snapped his fingers "Bats does love his toys, your armor is acid resistant." Robin still said nothing.

The Joker began to move towards Robin, as he rummaged around in his pockets. *Drip* The Joker opened his mouth as if he was going to speak, but suddenly he cut the top of Robin's right shoulder effectively destroying his armor. Robin hissed, but said nothing. "That's better~" Joker said with a smile.

*Drip*

This time Robin jerked away from the device after he felt the acid on his shoulder. The Joker laughed in delight "Excellent."

*Drip* *Drip* *Drip* *Drip* *Drip* Neither Robin nor the Joker said anything for a short while. All that could be heard was the dripping of the acid and Robin's struggle to move away from it. After a while Robin slumped forward and his blood ran down his chest and onto the chains.

Meanwhile, the team was horrified at what was happening to their little Bird.

"Come on Bird Brain, have you given up already?" the Joker mocked. Still Robin said nothing. "This game isn't fun unless you scream…" the Joker said in a flat voice "And if the acid won't then I will…" Then, with sudden speed, the Joker had his knife out and plunged it into Robin's left elbow.

Robin opened his mouth as if he was going to scream, but no noise came out. His head lolled forward and they could see him panting from the effort of not screaming. *Drip* Robin jerked again only this time more violently and less controlled.

"Yay, you're starting to break~" the Joker cooed. "Now that I've got you all tied up, I should start to break those hollow bones of yours. But where to start… I can't collapse your chest yet, cause you still need to scream, so… I guess I should break your legs." He said in a matter-o-fact tone. Then out of nowhere the Joker pulled out a baseball bat with the words 'Bat for Bats' carved into it. *Drip* *THWACK*

The Joker giggled and laughed as he watched Robin writhe, a sickening smile smeared across his face. "Batter up~" the Joker said as he pulled back for the next swing. *THWACK*

*THWACK* *KRUCH* *SPLURT*

On the third swing, he successfully shattered Robin's left knee. Robin threw his head back and screamed at the top of his lungs, all while the Joker turned and did a dance. Robin's scream petered off into a hiccupping sob. "I knew I could get you to sing~" the Joker said with glee. *Drip*

"ROBIN!" Zatanna screamed and tried to run forward, but Artemis stopped her.

"You can't! There isn't anything you can do… there isn't anything any of us can do." Artemis lamented quietly.

Robin slouched forward and tried to control his breathing as his blood spilt down from his shoulder onto his chest and over the chains. "…You won't get…away with this…" Robin panted out.

"Ha, the boy blunder speaks!" the Joker exclaims. "And why do you think that?"

"Batman, will find me." Robin stated as if it was a fact.

Now the Joker doubled over with laughter. After his laughing fit was done, he straightened up and wiped tears from his eyes "That's rich! Bats' not going to find you, I don't even think he would be looking for someone like you! I mean, I know Batman, way better than you. If he was looking for you, he would have found you ten minutes ago!"

"What! How long have I been here?" Robin shouted in alarm.

"About forty minutes." the Joker said conversationally.

Robin looked stunned. He was about to speak when *Drip*. He jerked again still trying to get away from the acid. "Bird boy, you just crack me up! I can't believe that you actually thought Batman is your partner or that he would come and save you! He has all of Arkham to deal with, why would he let all of those crazies go just to save one little bird." The Joker said with a laugh.

Robin didn't say anything he just looked down. "Bats will probably be happy when he gets your corpse all tied up with a bow. I mean, now he doesn't have to deal with an annoying bird all the time~" the Joker said.

"N-no you're wrong! Batman will find me!" Robin shouted, but he doesn't sound nearly as confident. "…el a promis…" [ …he promised… ] Robin mumbled.

"You know, now that I have heard you scream, I don't have to keep you alive anymore~" the Joker almost sang as he pranced off to a bloody medical bag. "Found it!" he shouted with glee and pulled out a blood stained crowbar. "Honestly this just makes a more satisfying noise when it breaks ribs." The Joker said as if he was a teacher explaining something to student.

"I can't watch!" Miss M sobs as she puts her head on Connor's chest.

Just as the Joker pulled back for the swing, Robin jumps down from the rafters and grabs the crowbar. The whole team jump with alarm, then they realize it's just the Mask from earlier.

"How did you guys get out of your cell? Hell, how did you get into a memory?!" Robin shouted.

"…we… We were… let out by Before and After…" Zatanna hiccupped as she wiped tears from her face.

Robin seemed to droop in unspoken sadness. Then he pulled a bit of string out of his utility belt and ties it on the crowbar. He walked over to Zatanna and just held her. "It's okay, just breathe… everything will be fine… I promise." Robin croons softly.

"…How I can it possibly be okay?" Zatanna asked.

"Because Batman saves him. Batman **always** saves him. 'Sides this is a memory and he's still alive, right?" Robin said with a small laugh. "Now come on, you guys shouldn't be here."

"No, we can't leave." Wally said he looked pale, but he seemed to be recovering as he held Artemis' hand.

"What do you mean?" Robin questioned.

"No, Wally's right. We told Before and After that we would help… and that means we have to watch the rest and go through to the next room…" Zatanna said quietly.

"But the next room is Prisoner's Domain. You can't be serious?" Robin said in alarm. All he received were grim nods. "Are you sure?"

"Yes." Zatanna said her voice stronger than before. "We're heroes too, and our job is to help our Robin whether he wants it or not."

"Okay. Good conviction. You're going to need it." The Mask said as he took a step away from her. "But before I start the memory, I need to tell you guys some stuff."

Robin motioned the group to come closer to him "Okay, I figure you guys have a couple of questions so let's start there."

"Why are you warm?" Zatanna asked suddenly.

"Wah?" Robin said.

"You are giving off body heat, why?" Zatanna asked.

"I have no idea. And I meant about the memory not about me…" Robin said a little flummoxed.

Zatanna blushed and replied "Oh."

Artemis snorted at her friend then asked "Why has it taken Batman so long to find Robin?"

"What do you mean- Oh right the Joker said it had been forty minutes. He lied. I was only 'missing' for twenty-two minutes." Robin replied.

"Really?" Wally shouts stunned.

Robin nodded and said "Yep, Bats realized I was gone five minutes after I had been taken by someone. Then it took him ten minutes to recapture the inmates and search all of Arkham for me. Then another seven to find the Joker and by minute twenty two the Joker was getting his faced kicked in. Next question"

"Um… how can you interact with the memory? And how exactly are you here?" M'gann asked.

"First, I'm part of his psyche so this stuff is part of who I am. Second, Masks don't have the same restriction on memories that Influences have, but I don't really know why." Robin said with a shrug. "Anything else?"

The others looked around to see if they had questions, but no one did. "Alright, then I guess I should start the memory…" he trailed off, but he moved towards the Joker. "I just want you guys to remember, that he lives and that Batman comes to get me." Robin said as he looked over his shoulder. Then he grabbed the string and jumped back as it came undone.

The second it stopped touching the crowbar, it was in motion. *THWUMP* *CRACK* *GLACK* Robin's head snapped back as blood dripped out of his mouth. "Wow, you're just like a piñata, the more ribs you break, the more red comes out" the Joker said with unbridled elation.

*Drip*This time Robin didn't flinch. He just slumped. "Na uhn, you don't get to just pass out!"

*THWUMP* *CRACK* *GLACK*

*THWUMP* *CRACK* *GLACK*

*THWUMP* *CRACK* *GLACK*

*THWUMP* *CRACK* *GLACK*

*THWUMP* *CRACK* *GLACK* *Drip*

All the while, the Joker just laughed.

*THWUMP* *SKLERCH* *GLACK*

*THWUMP* *SKLERCH* *GLACK* *splat*

*THWUMP* *SKLERCH* *GLACK* *splat*

By now, the Joker had worked up quite a sweat and he paused to catch his breath and observe his handy work. Robin was completely slumped and didn't move. His entire torso was covered in his own blood and now it was splattering onto the floor beneath him. Blood dripped off of his chin and down on to his costume. *Drip*

"…" Robin gurgled.

"I'm sorry Bird Boy you need to speak up." Joker replied smoothly.

Robin spit the blood out of his mouth and croaked out "I said…come here…"

The Joker placed the crowbar on his shoulder and began to move closer "What? You wanna tell me your last words, I'm touched." The Joker moved right up in Robin's face "Close enough?"

"Yeah…" Robin lifted his head so he could look the Joker in the eye "Next time you catch a hero…" *Drip*

And several things happened all at once. First Robin head butted the Joker as hard as he possible could and rasped out "Don't use acid to torture them." Second, the last drop of acid was enough to finally break the chains holding Robin. The acid had been diluted by the blood, but it was still strong enough to eat through the metal links that Robin had been dripping it on. Third, the metal strap hold Robin's right wrist in place clicked open as he finished picking it.

Robin used the momentum from falling to swing his injured right arm up to yank the knife out of his left elbow and use it to break the lock of the left restraint. All the while the Joker was staggering back and gripping his broken and bloody nose.

Robin hit the floor in a bloody mess as the Joker screamed "MY FACE! MY BEAUTIFUL FACE! I'LL **KILL** YOU!"

Robin pulled himself to his feet and threw down several smoke bombs as he tried to limp away from the crazed Joker. Robin hadn't gotten far when the Joker dove at him, knife in hand.

"I'm going to give you a reminder that you will never forget." the Joker said his voice icy cold as he moved the knife in a quick 'J' pattern on Robin's back.

Robin struggled and shouted as best he could, but he couldn't move every much. His limbs were heavy from blood loss and his vision was blurring. The Joker raised the knife one last time, ready to end it, when Batman glided down threw a skylight and kicked Joker in his grinning face.

Then the memory shimmered around the team and faded to black. "He passed out." The mask said in explanation.

"…wow…" Connor said. It was the first thing he had said since entering the memory.

"That's kind of an understatement… how, just how?" Artemis asked Robin.

"Which Batman's kick or my escape plan?" Robin asked, smugness leaking from his every pore.

"Did you have that whole thing planned from the beginning?" Wally asked.

"I thought that the acid would have eaten through the chains faster, but my blood diluted it too much." Robin said with a shrug. "But I believe that is the door the brats were referring to."

The team looked to where he was pointing and saw the same metal door simply floating in the darkness like they were. A few steps later, the group had reached the door.

"What's on the other side?" Zatanna asked.

"Honestly, I'm not really sure. Prisoner changes it so often…" Robin trailed off. Then he took hold of Zatanna's hand and said "But this time, I'll be there to guide you through it."

The team readied themselves for the vacuum, then Robin opened the door and they were sucked in.

* * *

That's it for this chapter. So yeah, it wouldn't be a Robin fic without a little torture… Read and Review. Also I was asked to put the translations back in, so I have. I also went back and edited the previous chapters so they have them too.

Stay tuned for next Chapter: Hide-and-Seek. Same Bat time. Same Bat place.


	6. Chapter 6 - Hide-and-Seek

*I don't own Young Justice, but I might own the inside of Robin's head, maybe?*

"Talking"

College + painting my house + driving test = BUSY! Sorry this took a while, I haven't been entirely sure on how I wanted this chapter to go, so I rewrote it a couple of times and I defined Robin's fear a little differently than I had originally planned… Hopefully it still flows. Oh, and if you didn't see the edit for Chapter 5, yes Robin is currently 14, sorry for the confusion. But on with the story

* * *

**- Warning Chapters 5-7 are Rated Teen for Violence and Terror -**

Chapter 6 – Hide-and-Seek

The group stumbled out of the doorway and into a mirror maze. As the door vanished behind them, the young heroes got a good look around. The maze appeared to have been abandoned **many** years ago. Almost every mirror was fractured in some way, reflecting distorted images of the team. The florescent lights seemed to flicker the moment they stopped looking at them.

"Well, this is new…" Robin muttered.

"…and creepy." Zatanna finished as she squeezed the mask's hand tighter. Then she noticed something really alarming "Robin! L-look at your reflection!"

The group looked into the mirror that Zatanna was pointing at and saw Robin, **their** Robin. He was standing right there with a body and everything.

"What the hell…" Artemis muttered in growing irritation.

"… I… This is the first time something like this has happened…" Robin said as he moved towards the mirror.

"Well that can't be good…" Connor said flatly as he pulled M'gann away from the mirrors.

Robin reached out to touch the mirror when the lights flickered too brightly causing all of the mirrors to have a glare. As the second of illumination passed the image of Robin had changed.

This new reflection was no longer holding Zatanna's hand. It stood all alone as he watched the group, a sense of cold calculation in his gaunt features; eyes hidden behind a jagged shaped mask. Blood covered him. His black Kevlar lined shirt had a red, distorted version of bird that had been on both Before and After's leotards. His tattered black cape billowed to reveal its red interior. He had one tattered black glove reaching out to them, mirroring the Mask's out stretch hand, while the other was behind his back.

"…_I though Antrenament told you not to come here…__**alone**_" The mirror image said with his voice frighteningly clam. Then without warning the image's hand shot out of the mirror and yanked Robin free of Zatanna's hold as he pulled the Mask in. The hand behind the image's back moved forward revealing a gun, the image pulled the trigger.

*BANG* *CRASH*

And the mirror crashed to the ground shattered into hundreds of pieces, revealing the back of another mirror.

"ROBIN!" The team shouted. The heroes were stunned by what they just witnessed.

"N-now what?" M'gann asked her voice shaking slightly.

Wally looked around at the group and said "We do what the kids told us to do. We run." With that, the team began to run through the maze. It was easier than they had thought, because all they had to do was look for the gap without a crack distorting the image.

However the team stilled bumped into mirrors as they ran. Sometimes they just bounced off and fell down like Wally kept doing. Or they destroyed the mirror when they hit, like Connor. But for the person at the end of the line, well, Zatanna just moved into the mirror.

*shplop*

Then Artemis, when she stopped to look for Zatanna. She put her hand on a mirror expecting it to hold her up, instead she slipped through.

*shplop*

The next mirror Connor hit didn't break. The mirror just parted like he hit a wall of water.

*shplop*

M'gann tried to make the same sharp turn as Wally, but she just couldn't run like Wally.

*shplop*

* * *

Wally paused to catch his breath and turned to make a witty remark about how he was still fastest, even without powers. Then he realized he was alone, trapped in fact. The path he had just come through was now filled by a massive mirror, it was almost three times larger than any of other mirrors and it was flawless. The mirrors surface was free of scratches, of spider web fractures, and of grime. "Guys?"

"Hey! Anyone! M'gann! Connor! Zatanna! ARTEMIS!" Wally began shouting as he moved around the mirrored room searching for an exit. After several minutes of searching, shouting, and smashing, nothing about Wally's predicament changed. Wally slumped and slid to the floor as he sat across the room from the massive mirror.

"This so sucks! _Just run through it as fast as you can._" Wally mimicked "Damn it, I can't believe I was this stupid. _Let's look at Rob's memories_!" Wally paused to scrub his hands over his face "…there's no **possible** way for this to go wrong…"

Wally was about to continue his ranting when the mirror across from him flickered to black. Suddenly a red cursor began to blink in the center of, the now, wall monitor. Then these words were typed out:

'_Tower of Babel_

_Case File: KID FLASH'_

The screen flicked black again, only to come back on as a video scenario began to play. Wally could only watch in horror.

_Artemis in Danger…_

_Running Out of Time…_

_Have to Move Quicker…_

_Vibrate Faster…_

_*BLAM*_

_Didn't Move Fast Enough_

_Everything Hurts_

_Shredded Flesh_

_Blood is Everywhere_

_ATOMIZATION._

The massive mirror flicked back to black and more red letters appeared.

'_Threat: KID FLASH_

_ELIMINATED'_

* * *

M'gann watched in terror as the monitor began playing its warped reality.

'_Tower of Babel_

_Case File: MISS MARTIAN'_

_Help her…_

_That's what Hero's Do…_

_She's Just a Lost Little Girl…_

_Just a Little Closer…_

_*FOOWSH* _

_Not a Little Girl_

_Yellow gas Everywhere_

_Help Me, PLEASE _

_Why Can No one See It_

_FIRE._

Then the screen flickered black, and the red writing spelled out:

'_Threat: MISS MARTIAN_

_ELIMINATED'_

* * *

No matter how hard Connor punched the monitor the video kept playing.

'_Tower of Babel_

_Case File: SUPERBOY'_

_Powerless to Help…_

_I Can't Control my Anger…_

_Dubbilex Gave me Shields…_

_To Help my Team…_

_Control…_

_*GROAN*_

_Not Shields, too Green_

_Can't Move_

_In Complete Agony_

_KRYPTONITE._

Superboy glared at the red letters as the appeared.

'_Threat: SUPERBOY_

_ELIMINATED'_

* * *

Artemis shouted and screamed in defiance as the video played on the monitor.

'_Tower of Babel_

_Case File: ARTEMIS'_

_He Has my Mom…_

_This is About Revenge On Sportsmaster…_

_Oh God I Can't Stop the Bleeding…_

_I Will Kill him…_

_*THWANG*_

_I'm Sorry Guys_

_Mom, You're Not Dead_

_No No No What Did I Do_

_Please Forgive Me_

_MURDERER._

Artemis read the red letters as they appeared on the newly black screen:

'_Threat: ARTEMIS_

_ELIMINATED'_

* * *

Tears dripped down Zatanna's face as she watched in open mouthed horror.

'_Tower of Babel_

_Case File: ZATANNA'_

_Daddy I will Save You…_

_Fate, He Can't be Dying…_

_Only I can Save Him…_

_I'm so Sorry Guys, But I Have To Save Him…_

_*SLUMP*_

_Not Fate's Helmet_

_Weird Circuitry_

_I Can't Move_

_No One Knows I'm Here_

_ISOLATION._

Tears streamed down Zatanna's face as the red letters appeared.

'_Threat: ZATANNA_

_ELIMINATED'_

* * *

Suddenly, they weren't alone. The whole team was in the same room each facing their own mirror. As the heroes realized they were no longer trapped by themselves, they ran to each other. Wails of sorrow and joy mixed as Wally and Artemis hugged. Connor showed one of his rare smiles as he twirled a sobbing M'gann.

While the couples crooned, Zatanna stood up slowly wiping the tears off of her face. Just as Zatanna was about to move towards the others, M'gann broke away from Connor and tackled Zatanna with a hug, Artemis in tow. After everyone calmed down enough to get a grip on what was going on they looked around the room they were now trapped in.

The room's walls were seven of these large mirror screens and each one held similar captions. _'Threat: AQUALAD ELIMINATED', 'Threat: ROCKET ELIMINATED', 'Threat: ZATANNA_

_ELIMINATED', 'Threat: MISS MARTIAN ELIMINATED', 'Threat: KID FLASH ELIMINATED', 'Threat: SUPERBOY ELIMINATED', _and_ 'Threat: ARTEMIS ELIMINATED'._

"What the hell is all of this?" Artemis said as she looked around, terror in the pity of her stomach.

"_Contingency Plans_" an eerily cold voice replied. Then the blackness of each mirror oozed and collected at one side of the room.

The ooze formed the Robin they had seen in the beginning. His features were just as emotionless and gaunt as before, and his very presence made the room feel colder.

"What did you do with the Robin!?" Zatanna shouted at him despite the fear she felt.

Prisoner seemed to stare blankly at her; then it turned, sticking its hand into one of the mirrors and pulled out a gasping Robin. "Here is your _guide_." He said flatly and tossed him to the ground in front of the heroes.

"Robin!" Zatanna shouted as she leapt to his side to help pull him up and into a hug. After the Mask seemed to get his bearings he hugged Zatanna back.

"Zee…" was all he managed to mumble out between ragged breathes. Zatanna helped him limp over to the rest of the team.

"Pathetic" Prisoner scoffed.

"Who are you?" Connor growled at the figure.

"I'm Robin." Prisoner replied coolly.

"No your not-" Wally started to say but Prisoner silenced him with a look.

"I am Robin. The _real_ Robin, not that stupid thing" Prisoner said voice icy cold as he gestured to the mask. "I am what Robin is on the inside."

"No" the Mask croaked out "You aren't him and you never will be. You are what he is afraid of becoming, nothing more. His team, his friends, his family-"

"I have no friends. I have no family." Prisoner interrupted.

"Of course you do!" Wally shouted "We are your friends and your family! The Leaguers are your Aunts and Uncles and we are your brothers and sisters. You were the one to tell me that!"

"No, those Masks' told you that. You, the team, the League are all pieces on a chess board. You are to be moved and controlled as I see fit." Prisoner said and with a wave of his hand the mirrors now held silhouettes of the team. "And what he is afraid of is that, the team will find out that this is who he really is, thus preventing me from completing my mission. And failure is **Unacceptable**."

"What mission?" M'gann questioned.

"I was tasked by Batman to formulate Contingency Plans for each member of my team in case you became a threats. Threats are to be eliminated, immediately. " Prisoner replied ice in his every word.

"No, there's no way Robin would just kill us!" Zatanna said defiantly.

"Oh, but he already has. Remember back in the mental simulation Miss Martian created." Prisoner said "We all believed that it was real, that we all would really die. Yet I distinctly remember sending my teammates to their deaths without batting an eye. I knew that all of you would die, but it didn't matter as long as I won. Everyone knows you have to sacrifice a few pawns in order to win a chess game. Just like Batman taught me."

"…what? What is he talking about guys?" Zatanna said as she looked over to her team. None of them could look at her. "Robin?" she asked the mask fear in her eyes. The mask looked at her then looked away. "No, No, NO! Robin-He would never treat it so matter-o-factly, so ruthlessly…" Zatanna petered off into silent sobs.

Prisoner shook his head and said "You sidekicks are very pathetic excuses for heroes. None of you have the guts to make the tough calls, because you all get so hung up on your feelings and emotions. It's disgusting. People are sacrificed every day, simply because that's how this game is played."

While he had been talking he had pulled out a gun. He moved systematically around the room shooting each mirror where the silhouette's head was. Before the mirrors shattered and fell to the floor the heroes watched as their silhouettes collapsed from the fatal gunshot wounds. Behind each mirror was a gray stone wall, except behind the last mirror. After Zatanna's outline fell and her mirror broke _the_ immaculate steel door remained.

"_That is a lesson __**all**__ of you needed to learn_." Prisoner said as he holstered his gun and walked over to a large piece of shattered mirror. He melted into it, leaving the team alone with the next door.

No one moved for a long time. Zatanna, tears still streaming down her face, marched over to the door and yanked it open not caring what happened next.

* * *

So yeah…

I'm almost done with chapter 7, and I think this fic will go to 10 or 11 so we're mostly done.

R&R please


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